Imagine
Posted: March 15, 2015 Filed under: Dies, Watercolour | Tags: Fabriano Watercolour Paper, Kuretake Gansai Tambi watercolour paints, Penny Black creative dies 57 Comments
I am enjoying my new watercolour paints and have watched some recent watercolour videos by the very talented Sandy Allnock. She has been playing around with the same paints (Kuretake Gansai Tambi) and posted a video last week where she created a faux glass panel inspired by vase she saw. I used some of the same techniques and made a faux marble panel. I painted blues, greens and purples on a piece of watercolour paper and let them blend. I dried them with a heat tool then added more layers leaving some pale and others dark and intense. When I was happy with the colours I painted some thin lines of gold onto the panel and blended them out on one side with a very wet paint brush. This gave me a soft edge and a hard edge I also splattered some gold paint over parts of the panel. The piece on the card above is less than half the watercoloured panel so I have some more to play around with another day.
For the sentiment I stacked four diecuts of the word ‘imagine’ each with ‘stick it’ adhesive on the back to make them easier to stick together. The gold cardstock I used was slightly duller than the gold paint so I brightened it up with my gold wink of stella pen. I did the same with the sides of the card base so it would all match. I am thinking it might make a good graduation card.
Supplies
Creative Dies: Envision (PB)
Cardstock: Fabriano 100% cotton hot pressed watercolour paper, gold cardstock
Also: Kuretake Gansai Tambi watercolour paints 38, 50, 55, 56, 62, 66, 91 and gold wink of stella brush
Pink Poppies
Posted: March 9, 2015 Filed under: Blooming tags, Sprigs | Tags: Faber-Castell Albrecht Durer Watercolour pencils, Penny Black creative dies, Penny Black stamps 18 Comments
Last week I posted several loosely watercoloured cards. The poppies on today’s card were painted with more precision and there was no spritzing to make the colours blend and bleed. I worked on a watercolour block which I had splattered with a fine mist of masking fluid. The end result with such a fine mist could represent snow but I think it could pass for rain too. I have had snow fall on my daffodils and tulips but the poppies are pretty safe! Once the masking fluid was dry I inked the poppy image from ‘blooming garden‘ with memento angel pink and new sprout markers. The colours are fairly pale so I had an outline to work with but not so dark that it would be noticeable after I had added all the colour. For this one I used my watercolour pencils as paints. I do this by picking up colour from the lead of the pencil with a waterbrush then painting with it. For the poppies I used colour from three pink pencils (listed below), for the stems and seed heads two greens and a brown then a blue and a green for the background.
I didn’t want both of the tall poppies to look exactly the same so I altered the petals a bit on the left hand one. When I checked a photo of seed pods to choose my colours I saw many were quite round so I fattened mine up a little. When the poppies and seed heads had dried I drew some veins and ridges with the watercolour pencils.
To create the little tag I painted a scrap of watercolour paper with the same colours I had used on the background of the main panel, die cut a ‘flower tag’, then stamped the sentiment from the ‘sprigs’ set across it. To complete the card I matted the panel with a narrow red mat, tied the tag on with embroidery floss, popped the panel up on a wider green mat and attached it to a cream card base.
As you know I love doing the loose watery images but I also find it quite satisfying to work slowly to paint a more formal image.
Kathy Racoosin is doing a 30 day coloring challenge at present which inspired me to do pull out my pencils.
Supplies:
Stamps: Blooming Garden, Sprigs (PB)
Creative Dies: flower tags (PB)
Inks: Memento Angel Pink, New Sprout, Olive Grove markers (Tsukineko)
Cardstock: Fabriano 100% cotton hot pressed watercolour paper, Neenah Classic Crest Natural White 110lb smooth, pink and green cardstock
Also: Albrecht Durer watercolour pencils medium flesh 131, dark red 225, indian red 192, night green 155, pine green 267, olive green 173, moss green 168, apple green 170(Faber-Castell), Cream embroidery floss
Gentle Whisper
Posted: February 18, 2015 Filed under: Gentle Whisper, Geometrics | Tags: Penny Black creative dies, Penny Black stamps, Tsukineko Memento inks 5 Comments
If you have browsed through the new Penny Black release you would have scene some lovely Asian motifs in both the stamps and the dies. In this card I was trying to create an Asian themed card by using the ‘geometrics’ die and the gorgeous large orchid stamp, ‘gentle whisper’. I began by stamping a very subtle background pattern using Memento Desert Sand ink and the ‘Oh Spring’ brush stroke stamp from years ago. I then inked the orchid stamp with markers, spritzed it, stamped on the watercolour panel and then spritzed the panel. I blended the colour here and there with a brush, adding a little more in a few places. To create the gold details and mat I cut up a couple of envelopes that had shiny gold linings. I stuck scrapbook adhesive sheets to the back of the gold paper then die cut my word and circle motifs. With the adhesive already attached I was able to adhere them easily onto the watercolour panel. I cut a gold mat to completely cover the front of my card base then attached the panel.
The stamp is quite large so I think I made this card a bit bigger than my usual A2. I hope you have been checking out all the wonderful projects on the PB blog lately. The designers are still showcasing the many new products from the new release, ‘Bring on the Happy’. Last week there was all sorts of clever paper cutting and piecing from the incredible Peet Roven. This week it’s all about the new creative dies.
Supplies:
Stamps: Gentle Whisper, Oh Spring!(PB)
Creative Dies: Envision, Geometrics(PB)
Inks:Cantaloupe, Tangelo, Olive Grove, Bamboo Leaves, Desert Sand Memento inks and markers(Imagine Craft/Tsukineko)
Cardstock: Fabriano hotpressed 100% cotton watercolour paper, Shiny gold paper, Neenah Natural White cardstock
Also: Scrapbook Adhesive sheets
Summer birthday
Posted: February 17, 2015 Filed under: Sprigs, Stamped Landscapes, Watercolour | Tags: Penny Black creative dies, Penny Black stamps, Ranger Distress inks 23 Comments
My husband and I both have February birthdays which meant hot summer days for the first 35 years of our lives. Now we celebrate in the bleak mid-winter!
For his birthday card this year I have gone with the warm tones of summer for inspiration. I managed better with this card than the anniversary card; I wrote in it and gave it to him before posting it here on the blog. To create this scene I started by flicking masking fluid onto my small watercolour block. Even though this isn’t a wintery scene some little flecks of white add interest and dimension to the scene. After the masking fluid dried I wet the whole panel and painted the trees and reflections in the distance, the sky and the water with brushes. In the foreground I stamped several stamps from the ‘sprigs’ set onto the wet paper and let them bleed into the surrounding area. When the paper dried a bit I stamped a couple more sprigs which stayed more distinct. I die cut a tag and splashed some of the same colour over it before adding a sentiment and ribbon.
Supplies:
Stamps: Sprigs , Sprinkles & Smiles (PB)
Creative Dies: Tagged (PB)
Inks: Dried marigold, forest moss, frayed burlap, crushed olive distress inks (Ranger) Versafine Spanish Moss (Imagine Crafts/Tsukineko)
Cardstock: Fabriano hot pressed watercolour paper, Olive green cardstock & ribbon
Watercoloured Sprigs
Posted: February 11, 2015 Filed under: Deco Frame, No Card Left Behind, Sprigs, Watercolour | Tags: Penny Black creative dies, Penny Black stamps, Tsukineko Memento inks 8 Comments
I had a card idea in my head yesterday and I did several trials and variations with the stamps from the transparent set ‘Sprigs’ but my original idea did not end up working. I set the experiments aside and designed a totally different card. Today when I looked at yesterday’s experiment I came up with the card you see above. The problem with the panel before I die cut dragonflies and a sentiment out was that is did not really have a focal point. The colours were pretty and some of the watercolour effects were pretty (others were messy) but it all looked too similar. By cutting the dragonflies to reveal the blue cardstock behind, the focus is taken away from the watercolour panel and transferred to the bold images and letters. I could have just as easily popped dragonflies on top but I like the cut-away look. The features I liked in the original panel are no longer trying to be the stars, they work better as back up. Next time you cast aside a stamped panel because it’s not working the way you thought consider whether it just needs to be in the background and let another element take centre stage.
To create the panel I inked up three of the ‘sprigs’ stamps with a mix of blues and greens. I inked each stamp with one colour using a large stamp pad then added another colour with a marker. I spritzed each stamp, stamped them on watercolour paper then, when I had stamped all the images, spritzed the paper.
I can’t always turn my experiments into finished cards, often the watercolour panels just get turned over so I can use the other side. Sometimes I wonder if the recipients of my cards ever see the backs of some of my panels, hopefully the adhesive holds and the rejected side stays hidden!
Supplies:
Stamps: Sprigs (PB)
Creative Dies: Deco Frame, Flutters (PB)
Inks: Nautical Blue, Teal Zeal, Cottage Ivy, Bamboo Leaves Memento ink (Imagine Craft/Tsukineko)
Cardstock: Fabriano hot pressed watercolour paper, Blue cardstock
Oodles of love
Posted: February 9, 2015 Filed under: CAS, One-Layer Simplicity challenge, Oodles of Love | Tags: CAS, One-Layer cards, Penny Black creative dies, Tsukineko Memento inks 10 Comments
This one layer card is for the Clean and Simple challenge at Splitcoaststampers today to have some kind of rainbow connection on your card. It also works perfectly for this month’s One Layer Simplicity challenge “You Blend!”.
I used the ‘oodles of love’ die to cut a mask from masking paper. I stuck that directly on my card base and sponged a rainbow of colours over the top. I removed the mask to reveal crisp white words. That’s all there was to it, a clean and simple card that actually was simple; doesn’t always happen that way as you know!
Supplies
Creative Dies: Oodles of Love (PB)
Inks: Memento love letter, dandelion, pear tart, teal zeal, grape jelly (ImagineCrafts/Tsukineko)
Cardstock: Neenah Solar White
Love, love, love
Posted: February 6, 2015 Filed under: Heartfelt, Poise | Tags: Fabriano Watercolour Paper, Penny Black creative dies, Penny Black stamps, Tsukineko Memento inks 5 Comments
I have another brushstroke stamp featured on today’s card coloured in a loose watery style using Memento markers. To begin I taped a piece of watercolour paper to a cutting mat with painter’s tape. I inked the ‘Poise’ stamp with Memento Northern Pine, Rhubarb Stalk and Love Letter markers, spritzed it and stamped it onto the watercolour panel. I stamped two more flowers to fill the panel then spritzed lightly to let the colour bleed and blend.
For added texture and background I applied Memento Love Letter ink to the heart stamp from ‘So Very Much’ set and stamped down either side of the panel to create partial imprints of text. With a waterbrush I added some diluted Love Letter ink to the edges of the panel, blurring some of the text as I went. For a darker red I diluted Rhubarb stalk ink in the same way.
On a scrap of watercolour paper I painted Rhubarb Stalk and Love Letter ink, spritzed it to blend then dried it with a heat tool so I could cut three “loves” using the die from the ‘Heartfelt’ set. The watercolour panel is matted with Coral Reef mix & match paper then attached to a Neenah Natural White card base. Once again I stamped parts of the heart stamp in Wheat versamagic ink down both sides of card base front.
Supplies:
Stamps: Poise, So Very Much(PB)
Creative Dies: Heartfelt (PB)
Inks:Memento Northern Pine, Rhubarb Stalk, Love Letter markers & Versamagic Wheat chalk ink (Imagine Craft/Tsukineko)
Cardstock: Fabriano hotpressed 100% cotton watercolour paper, Coral reef mix & match paper, Neenah Natural White cardstock
Pop pop poppies
Posted: February 5, 2015 Filed under: Pop pop poppy | Tags: Fabriano Watercolour Paper, Penny Black creative dies, Penny Black stamps, Ranger Distress stains 12 Comments
Today’s card features the new brushstroke stamp ‘Pop Pop Poppy’. All this week the new brush stroke stamps are the stars on the PB blog. Yesterday Jill Foster shared a video showing how to make her gorgeous watercolored card with this stamp.
I began by masking the watercolour panel with painter’s tape to create a border. I then painted water over the whole panel and inked the poppy petals with seeded preserves distress stain and the leaves with peeled paint distress stain. When I stamped it on the wet paper the colour bled into the surrounding area. I added tumbled glass distress stain with a paintbrush. I dabbed away a few dark areas of colour to leave areas of muted purple, blue and green on the panel as background colour. When the stain was almost dry I re-inked the petals with seeded preserves, and stamped again for a defined image. Using a stamp positioning tool I stamped the petals then the leaves with peeled paint and finally the flower centres with memento tuxedo black ink. I splattered a little seeded preserves stain over the panel as I like to do.
The little tag was cut using a die from the ‘flower tags’ set. I sponged the edges with seeded preserves ink then stamped a sentiment from ‘pretty petals’ in the same ink. To finish it all off I tied some ribbon around the panel and a bow on the tag before popping up the whole panel on a watercolour paper card base.
Supplies:
Stamps: Pop Pop Poppy, Pretty Petals (PB)
Creative Dies: Flower tags
Inks: Seedless Preserves, Dusty Concord, Bundled Sage, Tumbled Glass distress stains (Ranger), Memento Tuxedo Black ink (Imagine Craft/Tsukineko)
Cardstock: Fabriano 100% & 25% cotton hot pressed watercolour paper
Also: Green satin ribbon
OLS 13 You Blend
Posted: February 3, 2015 Filed under: CAS, Framed Flower, One-Layer Simplicity challenge | Tags: CAS, Penny Black creative dies, Tsukineko Memento inks 12 Comments
I can’t remember the last time I managed to participate in a challenge so I am happy to be posting a card for the One Layer Simplicity monthly challenge. The challenge is to blend something on your one layer card. I pulled out a new die called ‘framed flowers’ and used it to cut a mask. I added post-it notes all around the edges of the die cut mask so I would be left with just the rectangular image. My blending was done with memento inks and sponges, one of my tried and true techniques. My colour scheme was inspired by the current Runway Inspired Challenge #77, which is why I went for a black sentiment where I would usually just repeat one of the colours in my image. I like the black, it provides a nice contrast and I love the new set it came from, ‘snippets’ which has thirty-one little sentiment stamps. Thirty-one! Yay!
I hope you get a chance to check out the entries on both challenges and get inspired to play along.
Supplies:
Stamps: Snippets (PB)
Creative Dies: Framed Flowers (PB)
Inks: Dandelion, Summer Sky, Pear Tart (Imagine Craft/Tsukineko)
Cardstock: Neenah Solar White 110lb
Delicate Blossoms
Posted: January 30, 2015 Filed under: CAS, Delicate Blossoms, Stitched Edges | Tags: Penny Black creative dies, Penny Black stamps, Tsukineko Memento inks 13 Comments
Today I have a simple design featuring a sweet new stamp called ‘delicate blossoms’. The new release, “Bring on the Happy” is available in the online store today and it is full of gorgeous new stamps, dies and stencils. To create the little panel above I used Memento inks and markers on watercolour paper. I inked the stamp one colour at a time and used a stamp positioning tool to make sure the stamp landed in the same place each time. I stamped the blossoms with love letter and angel pink and added some water to blend the colours. I let the inks bleed a little but kept flowers fairly well defined. The branch was inked with two greens and then I added water and summer sky ink around the image to spread some background colour but avoided the flowers. Finally I drew the flower centres with a marker. I cropped the panel using one of the new ‘stitched edge’ dies and added a green mat and sentiment.
Enjoy your weekend.
Supplies:
Stamps: Delicate Blossoms, Heartfelt(PB)
Creative Dies: Stitched Edges (PB)
Inks: Olive Grove, Cottage Ivy, Potter’s Clay, Summer Sky, Love Letter, Angel Pink memento (Imagine Craft/Tsukineko)
Cardstock: Fabriano hotpressed 100% cotton watercolour paper, Neenah Avon Brilliant White 110lb, Green cardstock
Heather Telford 